Editorials

EDITORIAL: Resolve rail cargo hitch

SGR

A Kenya Railways cargo train. FILE PHOTO | NMG

The standard gauge railway (SGR) cargo service between Mombasa and Nairobi hasn’t got off to a good start. Kenya Railways, the service operator, has not been able to attract enough cargo to fill its wagons and maintain a daily train schedule.

On at least one occasion recently, the company had to delay the departure of a train from the Mombasa port for days due to cargo shortage.

At the heart of the problem seems to be freight charges on the SGR line that prospective customers find uncompetitive compared to the packages offered by road transporters, including doorstep deliveries.

Kenya Railways has responded to the customer snub with a promotional offer of its own that will see transporting a 40-foot container cost Sh41,200 or 41 per cent less over the next three months.

READ: Kenya Railways reduces SGR freight charges by half

But the pressure on the government to justify the huge Chinese loans taken to finance the Sh447.5 billion project and give taxpayers value for money means that the railways operator needs a longer-term solution to the cargo hitch.

For a start, the firm should address the early concerns raised by importers over relatively high costs being incurred transporting goods on the last mile from Nairobi’s inland container depot to industries.